Old Autosports - Value?

[Aysedasi]

Can I direct the attention of you learned ladies and gents here to this thread for a moment?

old autosports

A few posts down, 1951/52 bound Autosports. Anyone know if they're of any value?

[diz]

A couple of years ago, I was trying to realise some folding for a stack of old Autosports and contacted a dealer who advertised in the mag. He informed me that they were basically worthless and he had recently taken "about 3 tons of them to the tip". He had only kept his Pre 1955 issues and, if I was interested, he would sell them at 50p each.
Having said that, everything has a value. If you want / need old Autosports, pay what you can afford.

2004 copies are £2.80, which is about £2.75 too much for what is in them - new revamped version notwithstanding. Why the I still subscribe is beyond me.

[Vitesse]

A nowhere near perfect condition (some gnawed at the edges by mice!) set of bound Autosports from 1950-59 (18 volumes) sold for £320 on eBay yesterday. That's £17-18 each and quite cheap when you consider that individual copies of pre-1960 issues command a price of about £2-3. Early 50s copies are seldom available, but go for £4-5 each! I don't think bound sets are all that rare, but they don't some up for sale very often.

[TimD]

Binding makes a difference - a big difference. But I can't stress this enough - only to a collector.

Diz has discovered the problem that everyone has when trying to interest a book dealer in magazines. They simply aren't interested and the magazines are going to be more trouble than they are worth in terms of sorting and shelf space. Every dealer will have the same problem: Whenever people run out of space for their collections, it is always, without fail, the magazines that are first on the list for processing.

In my own experience I've fielded five calls in one day from people trying to sell Autosport or Motor Sport. Any magazines that a dealer is stocking are likely as not to have been taken into stock as part of a bigger collection.

But that's not to say that old Autosports don't have a value. There are just as many people searching for them as ever, but you'll have to work hard to find the customers. Publishers' bound editions ought to carry a premium over loose ones, but don't forget to check that they are original maroon books.

[Vitesse]

Oops! It wasn't £320, it was £420! That's over £23 per volume!

[Bob Riebe]

Almost all old car magazines have value that is as consistent as the stock market and Vegas combined.
I have old Autoweeks and without them for history I would not post as confidently as I do at time about past events.
At the same time.
I have purchased used car mags from .50 to over 4.00 each that I had, had at one time and threw or gave away.
If you have space, NEVER dispose of them.
Bob
PS-What Autoweek has become is worthless for most things, as it has little, if any, content that cannot be found better elsewhere.
I quit subscribing after thirty years for that reason.
There are exception to the rule I said above.

[Aysedasi]

Originally posted by TimD


.....but don't forget to check that they are original maroon books.

The ones I saw were blue, Tim.....

[David McKinney]

Mine are green - privately bound over the years. But then I had it done for ease of use, not as an investment.

On the other matter, a friend (here in the UK) recently paid £25 per volume to a private owner. Buyer and seller were both happy

[ss_collins]

Bound issues are worth.... less that an unbound run. Even then not a vast amount...

sorry.

[Aysedasi]

But will I be wasting £18?

[Aysedasi]

Well, they're still there. I couldn't bring myself to buy them.....

Just to confirm - January to June 1951 - marked Volume II and January to June 1952, marked volume IV. The 50 year old plus binders are in surprisingly good nick, while the magazines themselves are pristine.

[ss_collins]

I have professional interests in this industry and can say that it can be well worth picking up rare stuff, I recently sold a book I bought for £2 for £120. However bound issues of something like autosport are not worth much at all. A mint run of unbound magazines is worth a lot more - lesson - don't bind if you want to sell!

[Aysedasi]

I suppose it just depends on what collectors want. Personally, I'd much prefer to have a bound set, but, then again, I dump virtually all of mine these days anyway. In fact, I can say that I only have 19 old copies. The results issue following the last 18 Le Mans 24 Hours, and the issue which followed Ayrton Senna's death. Can't be bothered to save any more - these days they're just Schuey wallpaper.....

[simon drabble]

I can hardly contain my excitement - did you buy them from Oxfam? If I maybe so bold, buy them if you like them and dont worry if you have paid a couple of quid too much at least its going to charity!

[Aysedasi]

That is true. I''ll tell you what - if they're still there on Monday, I'll have them.

[ss_collins]

vitesse E Bay prices are always misleading - true market value is harder to pin down - I'd say over £300 is silly money. Especially a fsirly recently Autosport gave a load away.

[John Turner]

Well, mint unbound maybe worth more than bound but how do you keep them mint if they are not bound. These particular mags are over 50 years old; how many unbound mint ones are about? Ayse you must get these; they are worth more than £8.99 per volume. If they are in continuous runs of 6 months each in good condition, whether bound in maroon, blue or green, I guarantee your purchase. If you don't want them I'll pay you double and pay the postage and they will go straight into either mine or my son's (KRT917)collection.

[carrera]

Does this mean I've made an error by starting my last few bonfires with piles of old Autosports?

[Aysedasi]

Well John, as you will see elsewhere, you've convinced me. I did take another look a them yesterday and was very impressed with their condition. Yes, the bindings have "weathered" a bit over 50 years, but there is no damage, as such, as the magazines inside are absolutely mint. I was actually captivated as I flicked through by a superb picture from Rouen. GPL addict that I am, I love looking back at shots of circuits like Rouen and Reims which have largely disappeared. But that's another story. They will be mine on Monday, assuming they are still there. After that I'll think about what to do with them!

[John Turner]

Originally posted by carrera
Does this mean I've made an error by starting my last few bonfires with piles of old Autosports?

Carrera, it depends how old they are. If you are talking about recent issues (say the last 25 years worth) then not worth much, but the more that get destroyed the harder they will become to find in say 30-50 years time when our successor enthusiasts want to read them. It follows that their value will probably be greater then than now, of course. I agree that they take up a lot of room, and, dare I say it, the F1 orientated Autosport of modern times is not as appealing as it was, but the issues Ayse has found certainly have a value to motor racing fans whether they are just enthusiasts or historians and archivists as well. Given Autosport's currently relatively poor coverage of grassroots motor racing, what price early issues of In Gear in say 20-30 years time?

[mountainstar]

I wish autosports would get put onto CD-ROMs like National geographic did a few years ago. In a total of 10 cds I have all the issues of natgeo from 1970-97. It enabled me to toss heaps of mags.

[John Turner]

Ayse, did you get them?

[Aysedasi]

I mconfess John I had completely forgotten about them..... Had a very busy week last week, chained to my desk and other places. I might try and get down again to see if they're still there later.

[John Turner]

What other places?!!!! On second thoughts don't answer that!

[Roger H]

Hi
If you guys don't want them and they are still available, I would be up for them. Bound or unbound who cares, this is the history of our sport. Blimey £18.00 is only tickets for two at the local Multiplex and you know how long the feel good factor lasts from there.
Cheers Roger